The 19-year-old has not played another competitive minute since that impressive display at Valley Parade on February 8 and Alex boss Steve Davis admits Ikpeazu's fitness has been a big disappointment.

When asked by the Crewe Chronicle whether the club had considered sending the striker back to Watford, Davis said: "Yes and we've spoken to Watford and sent them a report about the fact he wasn't fit when he came.

"He has only been fit to start one game. He hadn't played many games in the last six months and should be in much better physical condition."

Crewe are currently in the League One relegation zone and Davis admits the club have decided to hold on to Ikpeazu in the hope they might see more of the form he showed against Bradford.

The former Reading youngster has struggled with various niggling injuries in recent weeks and he is currently undergoing a vigorous fitness programme to get up to speed.

Davis said: “He is a big boy and we are playing catch-up with his fitness.

“We are working him round the clock with strength, conditioning and endurance programmes, but that always risks injury because you are pushing so hard.

Comments (32)

This is disappointing and makes us look pretty bad, surely this should not be possible.
Several contributors have previously questioned the number of injuries some of our players have had, is there something wrong with our fitness/medical methodology?
Or are Crewe simply looking to excuse their poor performances, it will be interesting to see if we respond to this public criticism.

This is disappointing and makes us look pretty bad, surely this should not be possible.
Several contributors have previously questioned the number of injuries some of our players have had, is there something wrong with our fitness/medical methodology?
Or are Crewe simply looking to excuse their poor performances, it will be interesting to see if we respond to this public criticism.cliff46

I have said this before. We have too many soft tissue injuries and lack of player fitness does seem to below the expected standard. Perhaps with so few competitive reserve games these days that perhaps adds to the problem for fringe players and others not even on the fringe?

I have said this before. We have too many soft tissue injuries and lack of player fitness does seem to below the expected standard. Perhaps with so few competitive reserve games these days that perhaps adds to the problem for fringe players and others not even on the fringe?andyhooked

I think this issue dates back to pre-season when Zola was in charge. I forget who said it now, but after Zola resigned it came out that the players often had lots of time off, and since Beppe has taken over they are being worked harder. I liked Zola, but the players need to be fit for purpose, hopefully that has now started to change, and next season they can be fully fit and be able to concentrate for 95 minutes!

I think this issue dates back to pre-season when Zola was in charge. I forget who said it now, but after Zola resigned it came out that the players often had lots of time off, and since Beppe has taken over they are being worked harder. I liked Zola, but the players need to be fit for purpose, hopefully that has now started to change, and next season they can be fully fit and be able to concentrate for 95 minutes!thehornet35

no I see no criticism here to direct at Crewe.
There has been an underlying feeling about this problem at the club
for about a year now so those comments do not come as a total surprise.

Let us make sure that who ever is the manager at the club ensures we start
next season in A1 FORM

no I see no criticism here to direct at Crewe.
There has been an underlying feeling about this problem at the club
for about a year now so those comments do not come as a total surprise.
Let us make sure that who ever is the manager at the club ensures we start
next season in A1 FORMendean2

thehornet35 wrote:
I think this issue dates back to pre-season when Zola was in charge. I forget who said it now, but after Zola resigned it came out that the players often had lots of time off, and since Beppe has taken over they are being worked harder. I liked Zola, but the players need to be fit for purpose, hopefully that has now started to change, and next season they can be fully fit and be able to concentrate for 95 minutes!

Spot on I reckon - there were clearly some issues with player fitness and a lack of rigour to the training regime under GFZ, but things have certainly appear to be improving since Beppe arrived. I'd like to see him get a full pre-season under his belt...some of the players may not know what's hit them!

[quote][p][bold]thehornet35[/bold] wrote:
I think this issue dates back to pre-season when Zola was in charge. I forget who said it now, but after Zola resigned it came out that the players often had lots of time off, and since Beppe has taken over they are being worked harder. I liked Zola, but the players need to be fit for purpose, hopefully that has now started to change, and next season they can be fully fit and be able to concentrate for 95 minutes![/p][/quote]Spot on I reckon - there were clearly some issues with player fitness and a lack of rigour to the training regime under GFZ, but things have certainly appear to be improving since Beppe arrived. I'd like to see him get a full pre-season under his belt...some of the players may not know what's hit them!Loyal Supporter

Ramageland wrote:
There's gratitude. Take our player and then slag us off!

if you sold me a car and the next week the engine fell out I'd slag you off

If you bought a car without having it properly checked out perhaps you'd deserve the engine that then fell out. It cuts both ways.

[quote][p][bold]Banjo[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Ramageland[/bold] wrote:
There's gratitude. Take our player and then slag us off![/p][/quote]if you sold me a car and the next week the engine fell out I'd slag you off[/p][/quote]If you bought a car without having it properly checked out perhaps you'd deserve the engine that then fell out. It cuts both ways.mellow yellow

Ramageland wrote:
There's gratitude. Take our player and then slag us off!

if you sold me a car and the next week the engine fell out I'd slag you off

Too right but we haven't sold him, he's on loan. Either get him fit or send him back - don't whine about it!

Although if he spends as much time on the training ground as he seems to on Twitter, he'd be a world-beater!

[quote][p][bold]Banjo[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Ramageland[/bold] wrote:
There's gratitude. Take our player and then slag us off![/p][/quote]if you sold me a car and the next week the engine fell out I'd slag you off[/p][/quote]Too right but we haven't sold him, he's on loan. Either get him fit or send him back - don't whine about it!
Although if he spends as much time on the training ground as he seems to on Twitter, he'd be a world-beater!Ramageland

isnt the whole idea of loaning him out in the first place to gain match fitness and get his levels up?.surely crewe knew he hadnt played much,what did they expect?and 2 goals in one start and 4 appearances overall is pretty good.

isnt the whole idea of loaning him out in the first place to gain match fitness and get his levels up?.surely crewe knew he hadnt played much,what did they expect?and 2 goals in one start and 4 appearances overall is pretty good.onlyonerodthomas

If accurate, as a professional athlete surely he should take a large amount of the blame, as he should be responsible for keeping his fitness levels high enough to perform. As a young pro desperate to prove himself he should be working twice as hard on his fitness than others.

I do think that the club were not the toughest trainers under Zola, but still, amazed by this.

If true, this is simply staggering.
If accurate, as a professional athlete surely he should take a large amount of the blame, as he should be responsible for keeping his fitness levels high enough to perform. As a young pro desperate to prove himself he should be working twice as hard on his fitness than others.
I do think that the club were not the toughest trainers under Zola, but still, amazed by this.WFCinexile

The BestTrip2011 wrote:
Depends what impression we gave Crewe before we loaned him out.
Were we honest about his fitness levels I wonder.

Exactly right. This is half a story. Reflects badly on Crewe if we were honest with them from the outset, reflects badly on us if we weren't - who knows.

Either way though, it doesn't reflect great on Ikpeazu. He can't have been that ar%ed about getting into our first team if he wasn't prepared to put the effort in to get fit.

[quote][p][bold]The BestTrip2011[/bold] wrote:
Depends what impression we gave Crewe before we loaned him out.
Were we honest about his fitness levels I wonder.[/p][/quote]Exactly right. This is half a story. Reflects badly on Crewe if we were honest with them from the outset, reflects badly on us if we weren't - who knows.
Either way though, it doesn't reflect great on Ikpeazu. He can't have been that ar%ed about getting into our first team if he wasn't prepared to put the effort in to get fit.JohnnyBarnes

If he was fully match fit we wouldn't have loaned him out...the idea of sending our young talent out is to get them much needed game time and experience. What does their manager know, they are in the relegation zone.

I say make their mind up for them and recall him so at least we can assess his fitness and adjust his training programme accordingly rather than leave it in the hands of a two bob lower league club.

If he was fully match fit we wouldn't have loaned him out...the idea of sending our young talent out is to get them much needed game time and experience. What does their manager know, they are in the relegation zone.
I say make their mind up for them and recall him so at least we can assess his fitness and adjust his training programme accordingly rather than leave it in the hands of a two bob lower league club.D.unstable

The BestTrip2011 wrote:
Depends what impression we gave Crewe before we loaned him out.
Were we honest about his fitness levels I wonder.

Exactly right. This is half a story. Reflects badly on Crewe if we were honest with them from the outset, reflects badly on us if we weren't - who knows.

Either way though, it doesn't reflect great on Ikpeazu. He can't have been that ar%ed about getting into our first team if he wasn't prepared to put the effort in to get fit.

I think that you are correct Monsieur Barnes.

[quote][p][bold]JohnnyBarnes[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]The BestTrip2011[/bold] wrote:
Depends what impression we gave Crewe before we loaned him out.
Were we honest about his fitness levels I wonder.[/p][/quote]Exactly right. This is half a story. Reflects badly on Crewe if we were honest with them from the outset, reflects badly on us if we weren't - who knows.
Either way though, it doesn't reflect great on Ikpeazu. He can't have been that ar%ed about getting into our first team if he wasn't prepared to put the effort in to get fit.[/p][/quote]I think that you are correct Monsieur Barnes.northofwatfordpete

I think its left over from the Zola days. It always sticks in my mind that Zola would always say after 4 weeks into the season that the players still need to get match fit.

For me they should be ready to go on the first day!

We will see what happens next season in pre-season with Beppe!!

COYH!

I think its left over from the Zola days. It always sticks in my mind that Zola would always say after 4 weeks into the season that the players still need to get match fit.
For me they should be ready to go on the first day!
We will see what happens next season in pre-season with Beppe!!
COYH!day666

If accurate, as a professional athlete surely he should take a large amount of the blame, as he should be responsible for keeping his fitness levels high enough to perform. As a young pro desperate to prove himself he should be working twice as hard on his fitness than others.

I do think that the club were not the toughest trainers under Zola, but still, amazed by this.

Exactly. A young pro who can't get in the first team, goes out on loan to prove himself, surely he knows what to do to get himself in the right physical condition?!

[quote][p][bold]WFCinexile[/bold] wrote:
If true, this is simply staggering.
If accurate, as a professional athlete surely he should take a large amount of the blame, as he should be responsible for keeping his fitness levels high enough to perform. As a young pro desperate to prove himself he should be working twice as hard on his fitness than others.
I do think that the club were not the toughest trainers under Zola, but still, amazed by this.[/p][/quote]Exactly. A young pro who can't get in the first team, goes out on loan to prove himself, surely he knows what to do to get himself in the right physical condition?!1234566789

If accurate, as a professional athlete surely he should take a large amount of the blame, as he should be responsible for keeping his fitness levels high enough to perform. As a young pro desperate to prove himself he should be working twice as hard on his fitness than others.

I do think that the club were not the toughest trainers under Zola, but still, amazed by this.

Exactly. A young pro who can't get in the first team, goes out on loan to prove himself, surely he knows what to do to get himself in the right physical condition?!

Wonder what the issue was at Reading.............
......l

[quote][p][bold]1234566789[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]WFCinexile[/bold] wrote:
If true, this is simply staggering.
If accurate, as a professional athlete surely he should take a large amount of the blame, as he should be responsible for keeping his fitness levels high enough to perform. As a young pro desperate to prove himself he should be working twice as hard on his fitness than others.
I do think that the club were not the toughest trainers under Zola, but still, amazed by this.[/p][/quote]Exactly. A young pro who can't get in the first team, goes out on loan to prove himself, surely he knows what to do to get himself in the right physical condition?![/p][/quote]Wonder what the issue was at Reading.............
......lgrahamwfc

If accurate, as a professional athlete surely he should take a large amount of the blame, as he should be responsible for keeping his fitness levels high enough to perform. As a young pro desperate to prove himself he should be working twice as hard on his fitness than others.

I do think that the club were not the toughest trainers under Zola, but still, amazed by this.

Exactly. A young pro who can't get in the first team, goes out on loan to prove himself, surely he knows what to do to get himself in the right physical condition?!

I wouldn't be too sure. If you're young and possibly immature and think you're the absolute nuts, it's possible you could think that talent would be enough. I'm not saying he's got that attitude but he has got an attitude that he's going to prove everyone wrong rather than he's going to learn.

[quote][p][bold]1234566789[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]WFCinexile[/bold] wrote:
If true, this is simply staggering.
If accurate, as a professional athlete surely he should take a large amount of the blame, as he should be responsible for keeping his fitness levels high enough to perform. As a young pro desperate to prove himself he should be working twice as hard on his fitness than others.
I do think that the club were not the toughest trainers under Zola, but still, amazed by this.[/p][/quote]Exactly. A young pro who can't get in the first team, goes out on loan to prove himself, surely he knows what to do to get himself in the right physical condition?![/p][/quote]I wouldn't be too sure. If you're young and possibly immature and think you're the absolute nuts, it's possible you could think that talent would be enough. I'm not saying he's got that attitude but he has got an attitude that he's going to prove everyone wrong rather than he's going to learn.Harry's Bar

Why do people assume Sannino will be our head coach next season? Isn't his contract until May? Perhaps he was brought in to steady the ship rather than a long term prospect.

There seem to be similarities between Ikpeazu and Murray. There were questions about Murray's fitness and commitment last season and look how he responded, pre-pre-season training off his own back. Lets see how this kid responds.

Why do people assume Sannino will be our head coach next season? Isn't his contract until May? Perhaps he was brought in to steady the ship rather than a long term prospect.
There seem to be similarities between Ikpeazu and Murray. There were questions about Murray's fitness and commitment last season and look how he responded, pre-pre-season training off his own back. Lets see how this kid responds.JonBoy

JonBoy wrote:
Why do people assume Sannino will be our head coach next season? Isn't his contract until May? Perhaps he was brought in to steady the ship rather than a long term prospect.

There seem to be similarities between Ikpeazu and Murray. There were questions about Murray's fitness and commitment last season and look how he responded, pre-pre-season training off his own back. Lets see how this kid responds.

Maybe ALL the players should have booked themselves in the Michael Johnson Academy off their own backs.

[quote][p][bold]JonBoy[/bold] wrote:
Why do people assume Sannino will be our head coach next season? Isn't his contract until May? Perhaps he was brought in to steady the ship rather than a long term prospect.
There seem to be similarities between Ikpeazu and Murray. There were questions about Murray's fitness and commitment last season and look how he responded, pre-pre-season training off his own back. Lets see how this kid responds.[/p][/quote]Maybe ALL the players should have booked themselves in the Michael Johnson Academy off their own backs.mellow yellow

There was the reported lack of training done under Zola which is being redressed at the moment by Sannino it seems.

The shocking lack of games available to squad players these days whereas before we had the Reserves playing every week.

The seemingly useless medical/fitness team at Watford - I have never ever known a club to have so many players come in unfit, remain sidelined for weeks for minor niggles or get injured so much.

And the last thing is motivation. If you're a young player earning good money but NOT playing week in week out what is the driver to keep yourself super fit? I know some young pros do but don't forget these are kids so that discipline is not something that comes naturally to everyone.

I think it could be number of factors here.
There was the reported lack of training done under Zola which is being redressed at the moment by Sannino it seems.
The shocking lack of games available to squad players these days whereas before we had the Reserves playing every week.
The seemingly useless medical/fitness team at Watford - I have never ever known a club to have so many players come in unfit, remain sidelined for weeks for minor niggles or get injured so much.
And the last thing is motivation. If you're a young player earning good money but NOT playing week in week out what is the driver to keep yourself super fit? I know some young pros do but don't forget these are kids so that discipline is not something that comes naturally to everyone.Kismet110

If accurate, as a professional athlete surely he should take a large amount of the blame, as he should be responsible for keeping his fitness levels high enough to perform. As a young pro desperate to prove himself he should be working twice as hard on his fitness than others.

I do think that the club were not the toughest trainers under Zola, but still, amazed by this.

Exactly. A young pro who can't get in the first team, goes out on loan to prove himself, surely he knows what to do to get himself in the right physical condition?!

I wouldn't be too sure. If you're young and possibly immature and think you're the absolute nuts, it's possible you could think that talent would be enough. I'm not saying he's got that attitude but he has got an attitude that he's going to prove everyone wrong rather than he's going to learn.

Agreed. But if that is the case then surely Crewe's issue would be with him rather than WFC?

[quote][p][bold]Harry's Bar[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]1234566789[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]WFCinexile[/bold] wrote:
If true, this is simply staggering.
If accurate, as a professional athlete surely he should take a large amount of the blame, as he should be responsible for keeping his fitness levels high enough to perform. As a young pro desperate to prove himself he should be working twice as hard on his fitness than others.
I do think that the club were not the toughest trainers under Zola, but still, amazed by this.[/p][/quote]Exactly. A young pro who can't get in the first team, goes out on loan to prove himself, surely he knows what to do to get himself in the right physical condition?![/p][/quote]I wouldn't be too sure. If you're young and possibly immature and think you're the absolute nuts, it's possible you could think that talent would be enough. I'm not saying he's got that attitude but he has got an attitude that he's going to prove everyone wrong rather than he's going to learn.[/p][/quote]Agreed. But if that is the case then surely Crewe's issue would be with him rather than WFC?1234566789

Watfords players has never been less fit since Pozzos took over.. Fitness is not Watfords best point... Why is it the only player not to keep picking up "little niggles or strains" is Troy Deeney???

Watfords players has never been less fit since Pozzos took over.. Fitness is not Watfords best point... Why is it the only player not to keep picking up "little niggles or strains" is Troy Deeney???watford1881

watford1881 wrote:
Watfords players has never been less fit since Pozzos took over.. Fitness is not Watfords best point... Why is it the only player not to keep picking up &quot;little niggles or strains" is Troy Deeney???

I think the team we put out under under Aidy's tenure was the fittest and it is no surprise that he worked them hard in training to achieve that, every game commentators would mention how physically strong a team we were, under Zola he gave the players more time off and later starts on training days and this was picked up on Sannino's appointment along with lack of tactical training, which begs the question what was going on behind the scene? The team is missing a gel with the competative side in everything they did that was clearly there and steered by players like Eustace, Danny Graham and even Jonathan Hogg, only Deeney seems to be left with that mentality drive but again I think it needs more leadership players that we only get bits off from the likes of Fitz Hall and maybe 1 or 2 others. It is dissapointing to know a loanee is so unfit especially when it is a young player and to a lower tier club pointing out our shortcomings, agree he needs match practise but I don't believe Crewe refer to that point in his shape, also we don't know what contract the loan took place on and it may cost Crewe same whether he is there or sent back to WFC thus the complaint being made, otherwise they would have probably just returned him?

[quote][p][bold]watford1881[/bold] wrote:
Watfords players has never been less fit since Pozzos took over.. Fitness is not Watfords best point... Why is it the only player not to keep picking up "little niggles or strains" is Troy Deeney???[/p][/quote]I think the team we put out under under Aidy's tenure was the fittest and it is no surprise that he worked them hard in training to achieve that, every game commentators would mention how physically strong a team we were, under Zola he gave the players more time off and later starts on training days and this was picked up on Sannino's appointment along with lack of tactical training, which begs the question what was going on behind the scene? The team is missing a gel with the competative side in everything they did that was clearly there and steered by players like Eustace, Danny Graham and even Jonathan Hogg, only Deeney seems to be left with that mentality drive but again I think it needs more leadership players that we only get bits off from the likes of Fitz Hall and maybe 1 or 2 others. It is dissapointing to know a loanee is so unfit especially when it is a young player and to a lower tier club pointing out our shortcomings, agree he needs match practise but I don't believe Crewe refer to that point in his shape, also we don't know what contract the loan took place on and it may cost Crewe same whether he is there or sent back to WFC thus the complaint being made, otherwise they would have probably just returned him?corbindallas